Former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre once was the promotion’s biggest pay-per-view draw. But in stating his case for a new fighters association, he made sure to appeal to the biggest star right now: Conor McGregor.

“Even though Conor is the most well (paid) athlete, he doesn’t have his fair share of what he should have,” St-Pierre said today during a conference call announcing the newly launched MMA Athletes Association (MMAAA). “And I’m saying this from the top contestant to Conor McGregor, they don’t have their fair share.”

The UFC lightweight champion, recently stripped of his featherweight title, broke company records for disclosed pay when he took in $3 million for a rematch with Nate Diaz in August at UFC 202. McGregor has said he’s on track to earn $40 million this year for the Diaz fights and a superfight with Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 that reportedly broke the promotion’s pay-per-view record.

McGregor (21-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC) doesn’t come off in the slightest as a champion of anyone other than himself when it comes to the money he makes. But St-Pierre (25-2 MMA, 19-2 UFC), who joined the MMAAA after failing to negotiate a new contract with the UFC, said people shouldn’t count out the Irish champ as a voice for UFC fighters – a very powerful voice.

“There’s something I think about Conor McGregor; I’ve met Conor a couple of times,” St-Pierre said. “You have the Conor McGregor that’s a human being and the Conor McGregor of business. The one you see in the UFC is the Conor McGregor that’s business.

“But the Conor McGregor that’s a human being, I know for sure he knows what’s right. Nobody is a perfect human being, but Conor is not a coward. He knows what’s right, and everybody knows what we’re doing is right. So, of course, we would like to have the biggest name in the sport on board, and we need it.”

Currently, St-Pierre is among five UFC fighters – three of them ex-champs who’ve battled with the promotion behind the scenes – that represent the face of the new association. As MMAAA member and UFC middleweight Tim Kennedy said, they are the provisional board and will make decisions as more fighters join and policies are outlined. The association seeks a collective bargaining agreement that includes a 50 percent share of UFC revenue and a settlement payout for current and past fighters.

As his star has risen, McGregor hasn’t always seen eye-to-eye with UFC management. He was removed from July’s blockbuster UFC 200 card when he refused to participate in pre-event promotional activities. Just this past Saturday, he was stripped of the featherweight belt, reportedly at the UFC’s behest when a title fight fell through for next month’s UFC 206.

Barring his usual bluster about money, it would seem that if there were any time McGregor might be more receptive to collective bargaining, it might be now. But that might also be why St-Pierre isn’t necessarily optimistic about getting through.

“UFC will probably do everything they can to make it not happen,” he said. “But every voice counts for us, from the biggest draw in the UFC to the smallest fighter. Every voice counts.”

St-Pierre knows that McGregor is a polarizing presence among fighters who think the promotion has sacrificed the sport’s integrity for the concerns of business. But from one fighter who claims to have walked away from the sport “healthy and wealthy,” he believes McGregor should join up and change the sport.

“I know a lot of fighters talk bad about Conor, because it’s the business,” St-Pierre said. “They could be jealous, because he’s also a great fighter, but he’s also someone who sold himself very well and he did very well for himself. For me, I’m not jealous. I’m very happy for him.”

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

On March 19, 2011, 23-year-old Jon Jones brutalized UFC light heavyweight champion “Shogun” Rua to become the youngest titleholder in UFC history. But for Jones, it was only the start of a wild ride that at times spun out of control.